On Monday, September 15, DTCC processed 127.9 million transactions and handled 154.3 million sides on September 16.

"DTCC continues to be a steady force behind the scenes during this period of extreme stress for the markets, providing seamless processing to ensure the safety and soundness of the financial system," said Donald F. Donahue, chairman and chief executive officer. "Our ability to process unpredictable spikes in equity trading volume keeps the clearance and settlement process on a smooth course and contributes to the stability of the financial system."

More than 15.6 billion shares changed hands on September 17, 2008, in trading on the major markets. DTCC, through its National Securities Clearing Corporation (NSCC) subsidiary, provides clearance and settlement services of virtually all broker-to-broker trades on the nine major and regional exchanges and 51 electronic communications networks (ECNs) in the United States. The number of transactions is different than shares; a single NSCC transaction (also called a side) can be for any amount of shares and can be for the buy side or sell side of a trade.

"The additional capacity that DTCC's clearing subsidiary has built over the years in its technology infrastructure allows us to handle steadily increasing trading volumes and spikes -- while continuing to drive our clearing fees down," Donahue said. "We have long been able to process 280 million sides per day and expect to complete the efforts to raise our capacity to 450 million next month."

The clearing fees of DTCC's clearing subsidiary are the lowest in the world for equities transactions - currently about a third of a cent per side - and baked into them is not only capacity but an extensive risk management system. The system includes rigorous standards for membership, capital adequacy standards, financial disclosure and financial surveillance of participants, which are essential in protecting the soundness of the capitall markets.

Another significant value that DTCC brings in managing risk is "netting down" or reducing the number of trade obligations requiring financial settlement, which minimizes securities movement and reduces systemic risk for the industry. NSCC nets down financial obligations requiring settlement by as much as 99% on peak volume days.

In addition to managing risk, DTCC has to ensure adequate systems backup to support the markets. In its 30+ year history, DTCC's family of companies has never experienced a system outage or service interruption that prevented clearance and settlement.

"DTCC recognizes that the globalization of financial markets, the sheer velocity of trading, and the use of more complex trading strategies and instruments all make the management of risk more critical," Donahue said. "DTCC has long been in the business of providing strong risk management on behalf of the industry, and the benefits of that risk management strength have been particularly evident during this very turbulent week."